How to Avoid Booze at the Office Holiday Party

As the holiday season approaches, office parties become a staple on everyone's calendar. Whether over Zoom or back in the building, these festivities are often required as part of the job.

And though they bring joy and camaraderie, they can often come with the expectation of consuming alcohol. For anyone looking to drink more mindfully (or not a Tuesday night at least) or to stay sober altogether, navigating these events might seem challenging.

We've put together a practical guide and wrapped it in a pretty bow to help you use some effective strategies to not only abstain from heavy drinking but also to fully enjoy the festivities!

1. Pregame with Functional NA Drinks

Functional beverages has certain ingredients that are intended to provide some type of physical, mental, or psychoactive function. This is a booming market today

There are CBD drinks, kava beverages, adaptogenic cocktails, and of course energy drinks! A lot of these make great choices as pregame drinks to give you a little social boost for your event and replace starting the night with a boozy bev!

2. Be the Mixologist

Offer to mix some mocktails behind the bar for everyone! You can keep it simple with a ready-to-drink Sangria, or impress your co-workers with more intricate concoctions.

Doing this gets everyone involved, always everyone to try something new, and normalizes booze-free beverage options, even if others are drinking alcohol, too!

3. Arm Yourself with Talking Points

You might need to prepare for the ever-popular questions of "Why aren't you drinking?" or "Can I get you a drink?" So prepare some answers ahead of time to feel confident in the moment.

"I'm the DD tonight." "I brought my own drinks, thanks." And a simple, "No, thank you" will suffice!

Come up with a couple other interesting conversation starters that can steer the convo in another direction that doesn't focus on people's drink choices!

4. Embrace the Opportunity to People-Watch

Don't feel the fear of missing out... Feel the joy of observation! Being a sober party attendee can actually be a great time, as you get to observe everyone else's antics AND remember everything you did and said the next day. Phew!

Stay Sober at the Holiday Party

5. Establish Some Allies

Don't feel the fear of missing out... Feel the joy of observation! Being a sober party attendee can actually be a great time, as you get to observe everyone else's antics AND remember everything you did and said the next day. Phew!

6. Hit the Dance Floor

Another way to get away from the bar and the awkward questions is getting on the dance floor (or karaoke machine or whatever your party is boasting). No need to be shy even if you're not getting your buzz your on!

Dancing can bring natural endorphins and bonding moments with the other party guests - doesn't matter what's in your cup!

7. Hatch an Escape Plan

Set a tentative time that you know you'll be ready to leave the party and stick to it. Of course, if you planned to leave early and are having a blast as your sober self, by all means live it up!

Other metrics of escaping you can plan out would be how you're going to leave and what situations might arise that would make you do so. Being ready to go in an instant is a good thing and saves us from any rash decisions.

8. Volunteer as Tribute (to Drive Everyone Home)

If you want to enjoy the party all night long but still want to stay on the no booze train for the evening, offer to drive someone (or everyone) home from the event.

This guarantees you'll be there until the other person is ready to go, but also that you have to remain sober in order to be that responsible driver. Win-win!

9. Reflect, Reward, & Celebrate

The most important thing you can do is to STILL CELEBRATE! Celebrate the holiday, the camaraderie, and yourself for sticking to your goals and still enjoying the night.

Be sure to reflect in the coming days on how the night went, how you felt, and how good you felt afterwards. What were you able to enjoy about the moments? What would you do differently next time?

Three Cheers to You!

However you spend your holiday office party, make sure you are doing what feels best for YOU. Trying to make impressions or fit in by drinking is never necessary. You won't regret it tomorrow and there's plenty of options out there to keep you sober and satisfied!

This blog was written in part with Chat GPT.